Oftentimes, television viewers living in single-family dwellings or similar accommodations receive audio/video programming by way of individual cable or satellite television receivers, or “set-top boxes”, capable of receiving a multitude of channels from an orbiting satellite or cable television head-end. Use of one or more receivers for each dwelling allows each viewer or subscriber significant flexibility in the types and amounts of programming to which the viewer wishes to subscribe.
However, in more dense population environments, such as apartment buildings, hotels, large corporate sites, and college campuses, use of individual receiver units for each potential television subscriber or viewer may be undesirable from the standpoint of space consumption and system complexity for the individual television antennas and/or cable connections that may be required, as well as the costs associated with the initial set-up and maintenance of such a system. As a result, Satellite (or “Small”) Master Antenna Television (SMATV) systems are often chosen to service such venues. Generally, an SMATV system may operate as its own private cable company in that only the channels desired by the community to be served will be received and provided thereto, thereby possibly reducing overall subscription costs. In many cases, the system will employ a small group of satellite and/or terrestrial antennas, cable connections, and the like to receive the desired programming. Further, each channel of programming received via the antennas and other sources may be selected or tuned to by a separate television receiver or set-top box. Each of the resulting selected video signals may then be forwarded to a separate audio/video modulator, such as a National Television System Committee (NTSC) modulator, thus allowing the system operator to align the received channels according to a desired channel lineup. The modulated signals may then be combined and distributed across the target site via coaxial cable or other means to individual taps, each of which may be connected to one or more televisions, which may then tune to one of the modulated signals under the control of a user. Typically, the receivers and modulators reside in a small number of equipment racks located in an equipment closet or similar area.
As a result, an SMATV system typically provides a significant number of programming channels to a large number of potential users efficiently and cost-effectively. However, one or more of the system components, such as a video receiver or modulator, may fail occasionally, thus causing the loss of reception of a programming channel. In response to such a failure, maintenance personnel typically are requested to repair or replace the affected component as soon as possible to reduce the time period during which the associated channel is unavailable.